1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wiping instrument, and more particularly to a wiping instrument for effecting wiping operation to which is attached one of various wiping cloths which are used for wiping such as a cloth having water retentivity, a floorcloth, a chemically processed dustcloth and the like (hereinafter referred to simply as "wiping cloth").
2. Description of the Related Art
Such a wiping instrument, for example, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 has been known as a conventional wiping instrument.
This wiping instrument 100 is constructed such that the lower end portion of a rod-like operating handle 102 is attached to a base plate portion 106 made of a rigid material through a universal joint 104. Furthermore, the overall surface in its bottom 106a of the base plate portion 106 is formed as a flat surface, and a wiping cloth 108 is detachably attached to the bottom by means of a zipper tape such as Velcro (trademark) or the like.
In case of effecting cleaning operation with respect to a floor surface 200 and the like being a surface to be cleaned by means of the wiping instrument 100 constructed as described above, the bottom 106a of the base plate portion 106 to which is attached the wiping cloth 108 is placed on the floor surface 200 by an operator as shown in FIG. 9, and then the base plate portion 106 is moved along the directions A and B indicated by both the arrows in FIG. 9 wherein the handle 102 is held by the operator. Thus, wiping operation is realized by scrubbing the floor surface 200 with the use of the wiping cloth attached to the bottom 106a of the base plate portion 106.
In the meantime, since the whole profile in the bottom 106a of the base plate portion 106 is in the conventional wiping instrument 100 as described above, pressing force applied to the base plate portion 106 by the operator through the handle 102 is dispersed throughout the whole surface of the bottom 106a of the base plate portion 106. As a result, ground contact pressure per unit area of the wiping cloth 108 becomes low in the conventional wiping instrument as described above.
In these circumstances, however, it is known that the stronger force for scrubbing the floor surface 200 by the wiping cloth 108 provides the better wiping effect thereby effectively cleaning stains on the floor surface in wiping operation of stains on the floor surface 200 through the wiping action. In this connection, the higher ground contact pressure per unit area of the wiping cloth 108 provides the stronger force for scrubbing the floor surface 200, whereby wiping operation can efficiently be performed without leaving stains on the floor surface.
However, the conventional wiping instrument 100 involves such a problem that stains and the like stuck to the floor surface 200 cannot be perfectly removed thereby, but remain frequently on the floor surface 200 uncleaned, because of a small contact pressure per unit area of the wiping cloth 108 as described above.
Furthermore, the conventional wiping instrument 100 involves also such a problem that in the case where there are irregularities on the floor surface 200, since the base plate portion 106 is made from a rigid material, the wiping cloth 108 attached to the bottom 106a of the base plate portion does not follow the irregularities on the floor surface 200 so that there is a case where all of the floor surface 200 cannot perfectly be scrubbed by the wiping cloth 108. In these circumstances, such places which have not yet been perfectly cleaned remain on the floor surface if irregularities exist on the floor surface 200. Thus there is a case where stains on the floor surface 200 cannot be completely removed.